Tuesday, 26 October 2010

Turn Back Time 'The Shopkeepers'

Seven shopkeepers, who are the modern-day counterparts to historic traders, are taking part in this exciting living history experiment. But, as the history of the High Street is told, the shopkeepers and the shop usage change.

The Grocers
Featured in episodes 1-6
Dad Karl (47) is a trained chef and, having run successful restaurants in the past, he leads the family in the running of their own deli, cookery school and restaurant.
Food is his passion and he's keen for the family to experience 100 years of different produce, recipes and ingredients.
Mum Debbie (39) believes the personal touch has been lost in today's consumer society and wants to take customers back to a time where they were valued as individuals. They are joined by their daughter, Saffron (13), and Karl's son, Harry (22).

The Bakers
Featured in episodes 1-5
Caroline (50), Nigel (56) and their family escaped the London rat-race to turn Caroline's hobby into a successful and esteemed family business. They now run their own bakery business out of their home in Wales.
As well as running the home, as the baker, Caroline works nights and is the lynch pin of the business. Prior to taking early retirement, Nigel worked in sport and leisure management. He is now responsible for balancing the books and getting their home baked produce to market.
They are joined by children Jack (15), Raiff (13), Saffron (12) and Chloe (9).

The Butchers
Featured in episodes 1-5
Andrew Sharp is a 47-year-old master butcher from a family with an 800-year butchery heritage. During his career in the meat trade, having started at age 13, Andrew has worked in traditional butcher shops, market stalls and has run a large wholesale meat company.
Andrew took part in the series to experience firsthand the life and work of his forebears and wants his son, Michael, to experience the trade as it once was. He is joined by his 14-year-old teenage son, Michael.

The Ironmonger
Featured in episodes 1-4
Simon (46) is a professional blacksmith who was trained as a journeyman by the renowned English master blacksmith Paul Allen. Simon wants to teach a modern town the importance of craftsmanship and practical skills and, an expert in his field, he recently became National Champion Blacksmith for 2010.
Simon can turn his hand to most things and his expertise will be a crucial support to the other families. He'll be on hand to help them get to grips with the practical elements of this living history challenge.

The Dressmaker
Featured in episodes 2-6
Gill (31) is a master crafts woman – she's a designer, dressmaker and corsetry specialist. She began her sewing career at the tender age of six and was sketching designs and fashioning garments by the time she was 10.
As part of her evolving portfolio, Gill has become an experienced stylist, working regularly with commercial photographers and respected hair salons on magazine photo shoots and catwalk shows.

The Record Shop owner
Featured in episode 6
David is a 66-year-old music enthusiast who established and ran Europe's biggest second-hand record shop. David wants to share his passion for music, album artwork and the tactility of vinyl and would like to return to a time before the digital age when people had the time to browse and socialise while shopping.

The Convenience store owners
Featured in episode 6
Sunder (47) and Pam Sandher (44) spent the Seventies helping their first generation immigrant families at work and in the home. Sunder is the owner of an award-winning local shop, where Pam also works every day, and believes that the High Street is an essential part of the community.
They are joined by their children Karina (16) and Josh (12), and want to take them back to the Seventies to see how they cope without modern technology and to show them the difficulties faced by their forebears when they arrived in Britain for the first time.